KODJOES TIME HAS FINALLY COME

Jun 16, 2010

In tennis, patience is an attribute that could play a
significant role in the outcome of a match. A player needs patience
to fight through unforced errors, patience to figure out the
opposition's weakness and patience that the shots will eventually
drop.

With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that patience has
played a key role in the career of former VCU tennis standout
Boris Kodjoe.

After starring for the Rams from 1992-96 and graduating with a
marketing degree, Kodjoe launched a stellar modeling career, which
quickly led him to the bright lights of Hollywood. He spent years
acting in supporting roles on television shows like "Soul Food" and
"The Steve Harvey Show", movies such as "Love and Basketball",
"Surrogates" and "Brown Sugar" and even an appearance on Broadway
in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof".

It wasn't until recently that the former Ram got his break when
landed the role of Steven Bloom, a recalled CIA agent, in NBC's
upcoming fall drama "Undercovers", directed by J.J. Abrams
(Lost, Alias, Felicity).

"Success in Hollywood is very random," Kodjoe said. "You have to
be patient and stand in line for a long time until your number is
called. There's no such thing as overnight success out here. The
drive to keep wanting to get up every time you've been pushed to
the ground really keeps you going and that's what led me to this
point in my career."

When Kodjoe found out about the newest project from Abrams, he was
eager to get involved.

"Everybody in Hollywood was curious what his new project would
be," Kodjoe said. "I hate to sound cliché but when I read
the part I thought it was made for me and believed it was my turn.
I had to read for the part like everyone else, but once he called
to tell me the part was mine, I was extremely excited."

His newest acting role is just one of Kodjoe's many endeavors. He
is also teaming with his brother Patrick, a former
VCU basketball star, on a new clothing line, ALFA, which provides
customers with an opportunity to design their own hand-made dress
shirts.

"Patrick was the one that discovered this concept and it's taken
us about four years to really get it to this point, but we're both
really excited about the future of ALFA," Kodjoe commented.

Kodjoe wears many hats, but being a husband and a father is his
top priority.

"When it comes down to it, my acting or modeling adventures are
secondary behind my wife and kids," Kodjoe said. "Being a father
and a husband is the biggest role I'll ever land."

However, if things played out like he thought they would, life
might be a bit different for the Baden-Württemberg, Germany
native.

"It's really funny looking back because I didn't imagine staying
in school that long," he said. "I thought I might stay a year or so
then return to Germany. Once I got to the States, I realized how
much I was benefiting from being at VCU. It really opened my eyes
and made me aware of the opportunities that lay before me once I
got my degree."

It was Paul Kostin, the VCU men's tennis coach,
who gave Kodjoe a scholarship to take the court for the Black &
Gold and opened up a world of opportunities.

"Boris is one of the most talented people I've ever met," Kostin
said. "He's good at everything. I'm really proud of everything he
has been able to accomplish. He's been a great ambassador for this
University."

To this day, Kodjoe credits Coach Kostin with preparing him for
everyday life.

"Coach Kostin is more than a great coach," Kodjoe said. "He was
and is a mentor, father figure, friend, teacher and somebody I
could always come to and rely on. He is very simple and to the
point. He taught me discipline and commitment, always to be
prepared and never to worry about things I can't control. I still
find myself applying his teachings to my everyday life."

So while Hollywood may be 2,624 miles from VCU's campus, the
lessons that Kodjoe learned while with the Rams are with him every
day.